Dental Resource Center

Local anesthesia is a cornerstone of modern dental and surgical practices, providing effective pain control for various procedures leading to improved treatment experiences and ultimately, better patient care. To improve stability and shelf-life, the pH range of commercially available cartridges of dental local anesthetic solutions containing a vasoconstrictor, such as epinephrine, is between 3-5. Acidic anesthetic solutions, however, can lead to delayed onset, injection pain, and inadequate depth of anesthesia especially for sensitive areas like the palate or inflamed tissues. Buffering local anesthetics with sodium bicarbonate to raise the pH of these solutions closer to physiological levels immediately before injection has become a proven method to enhance patient comfort and improve the onset and effectiveness of the anesthetic.

The first chairside device for buffering lidocaine in dental cartridges was approved by the FDA in 2010. With the introduction of commercially available chairside buffering devices, some clinicians started experimenting with hand-mixing alternatives using medical syringes and sodium bicarbonate vials to reduce costs. The first study on this approach, published in 2016, examined the 'remove and replace' method and compared buffered solutions prepared using the same ratio of local anesthetic to sodium bicarbonate as the commercially available chairside buffering devices. Three years later, a simpler chairside buffering method, called the 'direct injection technique,' reduced the complexities of earlier strategies by simply adding sodium bicarbonate directly into the local anesthetic cartridge. A brilliant new product launched in 2025 has now reduced the effort of chairside buffering to less than three seconds: a brilliant breakthrough in optimizing anesthetic performance.

This interactive program examines the benefits of buffering dental cartridges of commercially available local anesthetic solutions with sodium bicarbonate immediately before injection to offer clinical benefits such as reduced injection pain, faster onset, and improved efficacy. These advantages enhance patient comfort and procedural efficiency, making buffered anesthetics a valuable option for both routine and more complex dental and surgical procedures. Case studies will augment the delivery of key points and a problem-based learning approach is encouraged so that each participant’s questions are addressed.  

Imagine alleviating dental anxiety for your patients with anesthesia-free, blood-free, and pain-free procedures (1). Now picture how much smoother your day would be! The 9.3-micron CO2 all-tissue laser makes this possible, leading to more smiles, stress-free appointments, and a more efficient practice. In this webinar, Dr. Jenny Jackson will explore how this innovative laser technology elevates the pediatric dental experience, driving new patient growth, reducing attrition, and increasing treatment acceptance.

1. Based on report of 1000 procedures performed by Solea users. Documentation on file.